Interview with M.K. who succeeded in the collective storm in Ceuta

M.K. fled from the civil war in Sierra Leone in 2003 seeking a better life in Europe. Through Guinea-Conakry, Mauritania and Western Sahara he tried to enter Las Palmas, but was caught by moroccian police and deported to Oujda on the Moroccian-Algerian border. With some comrades he decided to give at another try via Sebta/ Ceuta. After 25 days of walking through Morocco they reached Castillago, a small Moroccian town at the border to Ceuta, in June 2005. After spending three months in the woods at the border, he decided to take part in a collective action of climbing over the bordering barbwire and make their was into Ceuta. In this collective action of September 28th 2005, 220 migrants crossed the border in one night, with 5 of them being shot during the action, 200 of them being wonded, 30 of them heavily.

The Following is an excerpt of an impressive interview with M.K, which was made in Dezember 2005 in Ceuta, at a time when he had recovered from his wonds.

Today M.K. is living in Madrid.

M.K: We spend almost 25 days for these 900km (from Oujda to Castillago). Because we climb and decent, climb and decent, Morocco has a lot of mountains. By that time we enter Castillago, we don't know anybody there. When came there, we spent one day at Castillago. We meet with one african brother and ask him. We are just arrival, today. We would like you to take us to your place. He told us that for we here, we don't stay at house, we don't stay at any site, we stay in the bush. We wait for him until he finished his work. Because he tell me that the way they live in the bush, in there we don't do bussiness, we don't do anything unless our target, our plan to enter Sebta.(...) So they take us to the forest, I entered there on June. The conditions I meet at the forest are really tornment. Because if you see the conditions our brothers live in the bush, is beyond human control. They life like animals, like war zone. Like somebody in war, just like in military. Everytime you are somehow vigilant. Everytime you are standby. Because sometimes you came just asleep then they say the moroccian military have come. You started to run again.

So we was there from June, July, August, until September. For me I stayed there. Then one day, I went to town, to Castillago to find some things, because of lack of food and everything. So as we came back, some of our friend explained to us, today, if we are ready today, let everybody prepare to find ladder to climb. Everybody should prepare. They told us no retreat, no surrender. Nobody sould retreat and nobody should surrender. Let us prepare today. So everybody build his own ladder to climb. On the 28th of September. So everybody is doing training, prepare, because we know that we are going there - dead or alive, because everybody was tired to live in this type of situation. Will it be dead or alive.

So on 28th everybody is prepared, we called everybody. But some people did not come, because we are 215 people that entered. 215 people had prepared. So we said that today we are going to the grillage* (frz: mesh-wired fence), we want to enter Sebta today, because we are tired to live in this type of situation. So at that time everybody came. You have to go 7km from the place we live to the grillage. You have to climb hill again. And the places is very narrow, is not good and you have to take your time, it takes you a long time. We reached at the grillage at around one o'clock. At that time the moroccian military some of them they are sleeping. So when we reach, everybody attack, at one time. Me at that place I have injury, here, here, here, (showing), we have plenty people that have same injury, some people have foot break, some people have head damage. We have 5 people dead among us. My friend was shoot. They shoot him.

Q: Who had the idea to this collective attack ?

M.: You know that the situation we live at the forest is not favourable to anybody. The main purpose of coming to morocco - we don't come to stay in Morocco. We come basically to enter Sebta. To build a new life, we need protection, we need everything. That's the main purpose. When the idea came up, everybody supports.

Q: How did you organise your life there?

It is very difficult, because we are living a jungle life. Sometimes some people have money, some of them get from their relatives in Europe they used to send money. Like to get their daily bread, sometimes 50€ sometimes they used to send a 100€. It depends by your relatives that send the money, but even with the money in the forest you still suffer. You don't live in good conditions. Everybody is worried.

Q: During the three months that you have been in the forest, how many times did you attempt to jump the fence?

That one I can not tell, several, several times. That one I already tell you that: the frontier is well secure. Is well secure. If any black man enter here, you can congratulate him. He is a man. if you want to go by sea, this is danger. we have some of the people who swim, who cross by sea. who swim. Some, some of the girls, they swim. Then again there is a security there.

Q: And during the three months you were there, have you seen people who did it, who climbed the barrier?

Yes, of course, yes!

Q: How many people during the three months you were there?

During the three months maybe around 20/25 people - at the time I was there. Sometimes you can go, sometime people enter. You know our symbol: anybody enter here goes to phone at the forest there. Everybody would make a celebration there, they go "Tooza!" you can hear shouting. When you are there you could hear shouting, you know that people entered. We are all well organized, we are all a collective combination organizing something. But the securtiy is not easy for us. Because they have one telescope - over three kilometer they can see you.

Q: Many people were saying that European people organised the people in the forest, that it was not an action from Africans ? That it was an action organised by some people who were not in the camp?

Let me tell you one thing: I believe that is just a false information. Because at the bush nobody organized us. We ourself, we are going to organize ourselves. You know your target, you know your aim and objective of coming to Morocco. Morocco is not an easy place. That's why, you are going to pray to God everyday to flee from Morocco.

Q: You mentioned you are organized in smaller groups and each group has their leader - how many leaders are there in this camp where you have been?

Different countries. You stay there by countires, but we are all the same. Kongolese they have Kongo, Guinea, Africus, Guinea - Buisseau, Guinea- Konakri, but for me from Sierra Leone, we are not many, that's why we don't have... so Guinea and Sierra Leone we are all the same people, we share border, we understand each other, so we like to join with them. For sierra Leone they don't have their own leader. But if there is a problem, all the leaders will come and meet the Guinean leader. That old man. Meet with him and talk.

Q: Why did you choose him as a leader?

Because he is a ageable man, he respects himself, everybody respects him. The entire forest there. He is the father of the forest.

At the forest we put a law that there is no fighting. Because you don't come there to fight. They are going to tell you that, if you want to fight, you should go to grillage and go and fight the grillage. But inside here we live in peace and harmony. No fighting. He put the law. If you want to fight, it's a problem for you. That law is there.

Everybody respects him. He is a honest man. He don't like to stop anybody. Sometimes he used to by food, rice, and cook it, prepare it and give it to people who don t have the upper hand to survive out of their own pocket. Sometimes if you have a problem, if you expain your problem to him, if he is capable of doing, he can give you money. so everybody likes him. He is from Guinea Konakri. He is not a mayor, but he is something like a mayor.

Q: And who is making the strategy? For instance deciding "now is a good time that we enter"? The leader? Does he have military knowledge also? Or are they discussing?

At that time we don't discuss it like that. To plan this attack to ourselves. But for the leader, the leader was against the action. Because he brought up certain points. He said that, here we live, we live in peace, we live in harmony, we are all the same. He said that he cannot say, let us not go, but he is going to advised us that if we attack the grillage today, what would be the results, later? What would be the consequences? He said, that they are going to destabelize the forest for them. There will be no place for nobody again, no arrival over there. So we, we said that we support the idea, we tell them that there is no problem. Who want to go, let them follow us. Who don't want to come, let us remain.

Q: And you plan to stay in spain?

If i have my residency, yes i plan to stay in spain for the moment. ... After that and then I will see in Germany. I plan to stay there for some time. For me i am a diamond miner and I need to do more research, more education on diamond, to study very well, get my materials. I want to stand back my mind into my country.

interview by: Florian Schneider, Julien Enoka Ayemba, Armin Smailovic, Susanne Lang, with support from Annett Busch and Franziska Frielinghaus

Edited by Hagen Kopp